or


[01/16/21 - 08:52 AM]
Friday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC, FOX Share Demo Crown; CBS Leads Total Viewers
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

Primetime Preliminary Fast National Nielsen Data
(includes all DVR playback through 3:00 am)

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (1/15/21):

[Note: Fast affiliate ratings are inaccurate for live sports.]

ABC (4.100 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T1) and FOX (2.153 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T1) shared the demo crown on Friday as the latter offered up a fresh installment of "WWE SmackDown" (2.153 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2).

The Alphabet then served up its duo of "Shark Tank" (4.212 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #1) and "20/20" (4.044 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2).

Next up was CBS (4.855 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.4, #3) with new episodes of "MacGyver" (4.844 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T4) and "Magnum P.I." (5.291 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T4) plus a repeat "Blue Bloods" (4.429 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.4, #6).

Meanwhile, NBC (2.066 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.3, #4) offered up its coverage of the "U.S. Figure Skating Championship" (2.066 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.3, #7).

And finally, The CW (0.785 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.2, #5) rounded out the night with its mix of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" (0.886 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T8), a repeat "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" (0.742 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T8) and "Penn & Teller: Fool Us" (0.757 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T8).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+100.00% - Whose Line Is It Anyway?
+100.00% - Penn & Teller: Fool Us
+20.00% - WWE SmackDown
0.00% - 20/20
0.00% - MacGyver
-12.50% - Shark Tank
-16.67% - Magnum P.I.

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+100.00% - Penn & Teller: Fool Us (vs. Dynasty)
+55.56% - Shark Tank (vs. American Housewife/Fresh Off the Boat)
+20.00% - 20/20
0.00% - Whose Line Is It Anyway? (vs. Charmed)
-16.67% - MacGyver (vs. Hawaii Five-0 (Repeat))
-16.67% - Magnum P.I. (vs. Magnum P.I. (Repeat))
-25.00% - WWE SmackDown


Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (1/17/20):

FOX (2.580 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #1) remained the demo champ on Friday with its telecast of "WWE SmackDown" (2.580 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #1).

CBS (5.420 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) was the most-watched network despite its all-repeat lineup of "Hawaii Five-0" (5.487 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2), "Magnum P.I." (5.177 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2) and "Blue Bloods" (5.597 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T4).

Next up was NBC (3.776 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) with week two of "Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector" (3.783 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) and "Dateline NBC" (3.772 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T4).

Meanwhile, ABC (3.106 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) served up the return of "American Housewife" (3.430 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T4) and "Fresh Off the Boat" (2.408 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) plus a new "20/20" (3.200 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T4).

And finally, The CW (0.512 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.1, #5) closed the evening with the winter premieres of "Charmed" (0.676 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.2, #10) and "Dynasty" (0.349 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.1, #11).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
0.00% - WWE SmackDown
0.00% - Fresh Off the Boat (vs. 12/13/19)
0.00% - Charmed (vs. 12/6/19)
0.00% - Dynasty (vs. 12/6/19)
-16.67% - American Housewife (vs. 12/13/19)
-16.67% - 20/20
-28.57% - Dateline NBC
-33.33% - Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+14.29% - WWE SmackDown (vs. Various)
0.00% - Charmed (vs. Dynasty)
-16.67% - Dateline NBC (vs. The Blacklist/Dateline NBC)
-28.57% - American Housewife (vs. Fresh Off the Boat)
-28.57% - 20/20
-33.33% - Fresh Off the Boat (vs. Speechless)
-33.33% - Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector (vs. Blindspot)
-50.00% - Dynasty (vs. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend)

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [april 2026]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
   


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[04/24/26 - 08:59 AM]
NBA Playoffs Return to NBC Sports Delivers Big Viewership Gains Over First Three Nights
NBC Sports' first six NBA Playoff games averaged 4.9 million viewers, up 38% vs. comparable coverage last year and the most-watched for the first Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday nights of the playoffs since 1994.

[04/23/26 - 03:13 PM]
"Euphoria" Season 3 Premiere Surpasses 20M Global Viewers, Up 68% vs. Season 2
Episode 2 matched the premiere with approximately 8.5 million U.S. viewers in its first three days.

[04/23/26 - 02:50 PM]
Goal! ESPN Airs Two Most-Viewed First Round Game 2's on Cable Ever, Continuing Successful Start to 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Monday's Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins matchup (Game 2, 7 p.m. ET) delivered 1.6 million viewers and Tuesday's Boston Bruins-Buffalo Sabres matchup (Game 2, 7:30 p.m.) delivered 1.2 million viewers, setting the new Game 2 record.

[04/23/26 - 12:19 PM]
USA Sports Delivers Most-Watched Match in LOVB Volleyball History to Cap Inaugural Season of Record Viewership on USA Network
The first Finals match on Thursday, April 16, which Salt Lake won 3-2 in a closely-contested fifth set, averaged 163,000 viewers, ranking as the most-watched LOVB game of all-time.

[04/22/26 - 01:00 PM]
ESPN Opens NBA Playoffs with Most-Watched Playoff Game of Opening Weekend
Saturday's Houston Rockets vs. Los Angeles Lakers matchup on ABC averaged 5.2 million viewers, peaking at 6.4 million viewers during the 11 p.m. ET quarter hour.

[04/22/26 - 11:07 AM]
NBC Sports' Manchester City-Arsenal Is Most-Watched Premier League Match in U.S. History
Coverage averaged 2.6 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, Telemundo and NBC Sports Digital platforms this past Sunday.

[04/22/26 - 09:32 AM]
Record Setter! ESPN Opens 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs with Three Most-Watched First Round Games on Cable Ever, Excluding Game 7's
The Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins matchup (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET) drew 2.1 million viewers, becoming the most-viewed First Round Playoff game ever on cable (excluding game 7's).

[04/22/26 - 08:51 AM]
"High Potential" Shoots to Six-Week High with Season Two Finale
On linear over seven days, the show earned 8.71 million Total Viewers and a 0.61 rating among Adults 18-49, also marking a six-week high in both measures and standing as the No. 1 show of the night.

[04/21/26 - 02:35 PM]
FOX Saturday Baseball Scores Double-Digit Year-Over-Year Growth
2,094,000 viewers tuned-in to FOX Saturday for a two-game slate highlighted by Atlanta's 3-1 victory over Philadelphia in most of the country.

[04/21/26 - 10:51 AM]
A New High! NHL on ESPN Networks Score Most-Viewed Regular Season of the Current Rights Deal
Individually, the NHL on ESPN averaged 602K viewers (38 games) and the NHL on ABC averaged 1.1 million viewers (16 games), both new highs in ESPN's current rights era.

[04/20/26 - 02:36 PM]
"The Pitt" Delivers Its Biggest Episode Yet, With the Season 2 Finale Reaching a Series-High 9.7 Million U.S. Viewers in Its First Weekend
The season is now averaging 15.4 million viewers, up 50% vs. Season 1, becoming the sixth current HBO Max series to surpass 15 million U.S. viewers.

[04/17/26 - 03:01 PM]
ABC News Is #1 on Sunday Morning and Friday Night
For the third week in a row, "20/20" built on its year-ago telecast in all key target demos: Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49.

[04/16/26 - 10:36 AM]
"American Idol" Rocks to a 5-Week High
Among Adults 18-49, "American Idol" grew over the prior week, delivering its best performance in 7 weeks.

[04/16/26 - 09:01 AM]
HBO Originals "Euphoria" and "DTF St. Louis" Viewership Performance
"Euphoria" made its much-anticipated season 3 return to amass 8.5 million U.S. viewers in its first three days of availability.

[04/15/26 - 02:03 PM]
ESPN Delivers Second Most-Watched WNBA Draft Ever
Said coverage averaged 1.50 million viewers, up 20% year-over-year.